1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to passenger airbags. More specifically, the present invention relates to an overhead passenger with a patch that may be installed on or proximate to the vehicle's roof.
2. Description of Related Art
Inflatable safety restraints or airbags enjoy widespread acceptance as passive passenger restraints for use in motor vehicles. Airbags have built a reputation of preventing numerous deaths and injuries over the years of development, testing, and use. Studies show that in some instances, the use of frontally placed vehicular airbags can reduce the number of fatalities in head-on collisions by 25% among drivers using seat belts and by more than 30% among unbelted drivers. Other statistics suggest that in a frontal collision, the combination of a seat belt and an airbag can reduce the incidence of serious chest injuries by 65% and the incidence of serious head injuries by up to 75%. These numbers and the thousands of prevented injuries they represent demonstrate the life saving potential of airbags and the need to encourage their use, production, and development.
In part as a result of the benefits such as those described above, automakers are now required to install airbags in most new vehicles manufactured for sale in the United States. Many automobile manufacturers have turned this airbag technology requirement into a marketing tool. Enticed by the promise of added safety, vehicle purchasers frequently seek out vehicles with sophisticated airbag systems.
Airbags are generally linked to a control system within the vehicle that triggers their initiation when a collision occurs. This control system is often referred to as an electronic control unit (herein referred to as an “ECU”). The ECU includes a sensor that continuously monitors the acceleration and deceleration of the vehicle. This information is sent to a processor which processes it using an algorithm to determine if a deceleration experienced by the vehicle is a collision or not. If this accelerometer measures an abnormal deceleration, such as one caused by a collision event, it triggers the ignition of an airbag inflator.
When the processor of the ECU determines, based on a set of pre-determined criteria, that the vehicle is experiencing a collision, the ECU transmits an electrical current to an initiator assembly. The initiator assembly is in turn connected to an inflator that is coupled to the airbag module. The initiator activates the inflator. An inflator is a gas generator that typically uses a compressed or liquefied gas or mixture of gases, a solid fuel, or some combination of the two, to rapidly generate a large volume of inflation gas. This inflation gas is then channeled into the airbag. The gas inflates the airbag, allowing it to absorb the impact of the vehicle occupants and thus protecting them from impact against the steering column, the windshield, the instrument panel, and/or other portions of the vehicle interior.
Airbags may be positioned in a variety of locations throughout the vehicle. Airbags located within the steering wheel aid in preventing the driver from striking the steering wheel and the windshield in the event of an accident. Airbags have also been placed in the dashboard directly in front of the passenger seat in a vehicle. More recently, inflatable curtain airbags have been installed on the side portions of the vehicle in order to prevent the occupants from striking the doors and windows in the vehicle when an accident throws the occupant in that direction. Airbags have also been placed in seat belts, creating what has been termed inflatable seat belts. Knee bags and pelvic airbags have also been created to prevent an occupant's lower body from striking the vehicle.
One type of airbag that has received attention is recent years is an “overhead airbag” (sometimes referred to as an “overhead passenger airbag”). These overhead airbags are generally designed to protect an occupant seated in the vehicle's passenger seat. Such overhead airbags are generally positioned on or proximate to the vehicle's roof and are designed to descend and inflate in front of the passenger to prevent the passenger from harmfully impacting the dashboard, the windshield, the instrument panel, and/or other frontal portions of the vehicle during a crash.
As experience with the manufacturer and use of overhead airbags has progressed, the engineering challenges in their design, construction, and use have become better understood. Specifically, most overhead airbags systems are currently made such that that as the airbag is being inflated, the airbag is subjected to large amounts of tension and/or force that push the airbag towards the passenger seat. Unfortunately however, this large amount of tension increases the likelihood that the airbag will be deformed and/or deployed into a shape that fails to provide optimal restraint and impact protection to the occupant's head and upper torso during a crash.
Additionally, some currently known overhead airbags have a further disadvantage in that they form relatively hard and rigid structures when they are inflated and deployed. Such a rigid structure is disadvantageous because it increases the likelihood that the vehicle occupant will deflect or slide off the airbag during a front angular collision. If this sliding occurs, the airbag's ability to protect the occupant by preventing the occupant from harmfully impacting the vehicle interior will be greatly reduced.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art for a novel overhead airbag that addresses and/or solves one or more of the above-listed problems. Such a device is disclosed herein.